The National Library of Israel’s Astounding Fight Against Failed Media

Humanity desperately needs trustworthy sources of truth. But we’re not getting it from the big mainstream media. Instead, most of the news giants have devolved into “open mic nights” for liars — especially Islamist terrorists.

So it’s little surprise that much of the world has become radicalized. Propagandists use every tool at their disposal to mislead people. Combining the power of “news” media, social media, and AI fakery, dangerous hate groups are empowered in ways previous generations could only dream of.

How can people fight back against the torrent of disinformation? Part of the answer is a new, pivotal role for an old institution: the library. At the astounding new National Library of Israel, a team of truth warriors is documenting reality, saving proof, and making it available to anyone who wants to decipher fact from fiction.

In the new episode of They Stand Corrected, I take you there.

It contains a big area blocking out oxygen, so robots do the work. In this episode, you’ll learn how the library makes its collections open to the entire world.

(Find on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Everywhere)

Through Bearing Witness, documenting the truth about Oct. 7, this team is piecing through huge amounts of material, examining the provenance and metadata, and demonstrating how authenticity is confirmed. It’s also making the archive searchable, helping fighting back against the proliferation of lies online.

If only the media would listen and learn.

This group is showing the world how it can be done. In fact, one of the women I interview, Ahava Cohen, represents Europe on a key international steering committee and serves as chair of the working group making this happen.

Libraries themselves can be powerful signs of history. The original National Library of Israel was opened in 1892. This new site was set to open in October 2023. It managed to open despite the massacres — just without the predicted fanfare.

Meanwhile, just about 260 miles (420 km) away, The Great Library of Cairo is in a home confiscated from Jews who had to flee Muslim nations amid hellish pogroms.

Learn more at: When librarians are truth warriors.